Nancy A. LeaMond

Chief Advocacy & Engagement Officer

As AARP's chief advocacy & engagement officer, Nancy LeaMond has responsibility for driving the organization’s social mission on behalf of Americans 50-plus and their families. She leads government affairs and legislative campaigns for AARP. She also oversees public education campaigns, community engagement, and volunteerism and service for AARP. She leads a team of 650 staff and more than 17,000 volunteers across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. During her tenure at AARP, she has led several landmark campaigns including: You’ve Earned a Say, an initiative that engaged more than 10 million Americans in the debate over Social Security and Medicare; a multi-state utility campaign that saved consumers more than $1.8 billion by fighting home energy increases; Health Action Now, which ensured that federal health care reform included critical benefits for Americans 50-plus; and Divided We Fail, an initiative with the Business Roundtable, Service Employees International Union and National Federation of Independent Business that successfully put health care and financial security at the top of the country's agenda during the 2008 elections.

She is a nationally recognized leader on health, retirement security and other issues important to older Americans. Her career spans 35 years in the government and nonprofit sectors.

Prior to coming to AARP, she served as the chief of staff and assistant U.S. trade representative for congressional affairs at the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR). In this role, she oversaw operations and management of the 200-person agency. She coordinated public affairs, private sector outreach, policy development and legislative strrategy for the enactment of landmark trade legislation. She successfully managed legislative efforts that helped secure passage of major presidential legislative initiatives, including the North American Free Trade Agreement, the Uruguay Round (GATT) and China MFN. She worked extensively on health care and pension issues before entering the trade field, beginning her career in the Public Health Service, the Medicaid program and the Department of Commerce. She served in the Office of Management and Budget, the Department of Education (from which she received the ‘Professional Achievement Award’) and later on Capitol Hill as chief of staff to a senior member of Congress in the Democratic leadership.

In addition, for five years she served as president of the Congressional Economic Leadership Institute, a nonprofit and nonpartisan forum for education and dialogue with members of Congress on economic competitiveness and trade issues.

She holds a bachelor's degree from Smith College and a master's degree in public policy and urban planning from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. She is a former trustee of Smith College, a member of the KB Home National Advisory Board on home and community development, and a member of the board of the International Women's Forum of Washington, D.C. She was named by The Hill as one of the “Top Lobbyists” in 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014.